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21 February 2023BiotechnologyLiz Hockley

Biotech secures CRISPR patent for COVID-19 diagnostic test

Sherlock boosts IP portfolio with exclusive US rights to patent | Technology could be used to detect malaria, TB and COVID-19.

The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted  Sherlock Biosciences a patent for the use of the Cas12 enzyme in CRISPR-based diagnostics, a move that could advance over-the-counter tests for consumers.

The Watertown, Massachusetts firm develops CRISPR-based diagnostic tests for diseases including STIs and respiratory infections. CRISPR is a form of gene editing that is usually done with the Cas9 enzyme—and is already the subject of several patent disputes.

Unlike Cas9, the Cas12 enzyme is better used for detecting DNA and RNA sequences rather than editing them, and Sherlock says it has already proved how Cas12 could enable accurate, low-cost detection of diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and COVID-19.

The new patent covers a method for “detecting nucleic acids leveraging the collateral cleavage activity of Cas12”. Sherlock has gained the exclusive US rights to the patent from Shanghai-based Tolo Biotech, as well as IP for Cas12 and Cas13 from the Broad Institute.

President and CEO of Sherlock Biosciences, Bryan Dechario, said: “Sherlock’s diagnostic tests have the potential to transform the healthcare paradigm by shifting power to consumers. Securing this patent is an important step to deliver powerful, over-the-counter diagnostics so consumers have more control over their healthcare decisions.

“Our diagnostics rely on novel uses of synthetic biology and CRISPR technology to condense the traditional lab tools into handheld tests. With this patent, on top of our existing agreement with Tolo granting co-exclusivity to Cas12 globally, we have secured our dominant IP position with the most comprehensive portfolio of diagnostic CRISPR patents.”

New era of testing

Earlier this month, Sherlock also boosted its diagnostics capability with the acquisition of Sense Biodetection, a UK-headquartered firm which has developed an instrument-free molecular test platform. Sense gained a CE Mark in March last year for its Veros COVID-19 test that does not require an instrument or reader and is as effective as lab-based PCR tests, according to the firm.

Commenting on the two developments, Sherlock co-founder and board member Jim Collins said: “With this patent, Sherlock has a clear, unimpeded pathway to commercialisation for our CRISPR-based diagnostics. The pairing of proprietary amplification technology from the Wyss Institute, as well as the rapid molecular amplification chemistry gained through our recent acquisition of Sense Biodetection, puts us on track to become a global health leader.

“This dominant and defensible patent position will allow us to establish the necessary market foothold in the US before we bring our rapid, point-of-need diagnostic tests to the rest of the world.”

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More on this story

Big Pharma
20 July 2023   SNIPR Biome has five patents reinstated after court rules they cannot be subject to interference | Rockefeller University had challenged patents on pre-AIA, first-to-invent basis.
Americas
1 March 2022   Patents core to the breakthrough gene-editing technology CRISPR belong to the University of Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Broad Institute, the US Patent and Trademark Office has ruled.